Rihga Royal Hotel Hiroshima

Hiroshima probably is not high on the list of destinations in Japan, because it doesn't have any 5 star hotels. We picked this one because of the location and price (booked on Expedia). The hotel is a high rise and the lobby certainly looked like a good hotel, but the room is definitely plain and basic. We did have a view out of the window toward the restored Hiroshima castle.

Only about 1 km from the A-bomb dome and the memorial site, it is very convenient. We did have to take a taxi from the train station to the hotel, but buses do run to the hotel. Right next door to the hotel is a very large shopping center with the Sogo Department store. There were many restaurants in the shopping center complex, some right next to the hotel, you can get to without having to walk to the street. In the Sogo complex basement was a HUGE food street with so many vendors and foods that you just have to go and see for yourself.

We made the mistake of having a breakfast buffet at the hotel, not knowing other options were less than 1 block away. The buffet was EXPENSIVE, not a good variety and really a great disappointment. We have had great foods everywhere in Japan, except this meal was a letdown.

No free internet, we had to pay about $10 per day for accessing the internet.

The bathroom mirror had a heated center so that it did not fog up, which was the only one we saw on this trip!

So it's an OK hotel, with great location, just don't eat here.